History on Fire

• EPISODE 114: The Years of Lead: Piazza Fontana

  “With P2, we had Italy in our hands. The Army, the Guardia di Finanzia, the police… they were all ruled by our members.” - Licio Gelli “Every week the streets of Milan were the theater of demonstrations, and were lit up by the fires of Molotov cocktails.” - Guido Passalacqua My childhood took place at a time known in Italy as The Years of Lead. It was a time of tear gas, terrorist attacks, false flag operations, anarchists getting thrown out of the windows of police stations, bombs on trains, assassinations, and street battles. One day, in my hometown, a bomb placed in a bank killed 17 people and wounded many more. It was the opening round in a war waged terrorists and some members of the secret services to bring about an authoritarian coup. This episode is about the dark days when political violence was an ever-present reality in the streets of Italy.  • If you feel generous and enjoy History on Fire, please consider joining my ⁠Patreon⁠ to access plenty of bonus content.  • All the links to History on Fire social media can be found at our LinkTree, including our ⁠HOF YouTube Channel⁠, ⁠Substack⁠, ⁠Instagram⁠, and ⁠TikTok⁠. • JAPAN TOUR! Let’s head out to Japan in Oct 2026. All the details at Geek Nation Tours. • Throughout history, people have used mushrooms (such as Lion’s Mane, Turkey Tail, Cordyceps, Reishi and Chaga) for their medicinal properties. My friends started ⁠⁠Purest Mushrooms⁠⁠ where they offer some of the best quality mushrooms you can find on the market at affordable prices. Use code historyonfire at checkout for a discount. • Bison is some of the healthiest meat you could possibly eat. Get yours at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Dakota Pure Bison⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. History on Fire listeners get a discount by using the code HOF10 at checkout. • This episode is supported by Arizona State University. Learn more about how ASU supports all learners through all stages of life. • My friend James Pieratt is one of the world’s top functional training experts, and a record-breaking hybrid athlete. Use the code WH25 for a 25% discount on all of his training programs at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Wild Hunt Conditioning⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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• EPISODE 113: Rome’s Forgotten Guerrilla Master

  “For many of those for whom there is no light at the end of the tunnel, the story of Sertorius should be an example and an inspiration.” - Philip Matyszak Here’s the tale of one of Rome’s greatest and least known generals. A master of guerrilla warfare, he defeated many legions sent after him, and even outclassed Pompey the Great. His story is about the defiance that makes a man stand in the face of impossible odds. Nearly alone against the greatest power of the age, Sertorius knew his chances of victory were nearly non existent, but this didn’t stop him from fighting just the same.  If you feel generous and enjoy History on Fire, please consider joining my Patreon to access plenty of bonus content.  All the links to History on Fire social media can be found at our LinkTree, including our: HOF YouTube Channel Substack Instagram TikTok Throughout history, people have used mushrooms (such as Lion’s Mane, Turkey Tail, Cordyceps, Reishi and Chaga) for their medicinal properties. My friends started Purest Mushrooms where they offer some of the best quality mushrooms you can find on the market at affordable prices. Use code historyonfire at checkout for a discount. Bison is some of the healthiest meat you could possibly eat. Get yours at ⁠⁠⁠Dakota Pure Bison⁠⁠⁠. History on Fire listeners get a discount by using the code HOF10 at checkout. This episode is supported by Arizona State University. Learn more about how ⁠⁠⁠ASU⁠⁠⁠ supports all learners through all stages of life.  My friend James Pieratt is one of the world’s top functional training experts, and a record-breaking hybrid athlete. Use the code WH25 for a 25% discount on all of his training programs at ⁠⁠⁠Wild Hunt Conditioning⁠⁠⁠. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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• [RERUN] EPISODE 80: The Patriotic Mobsters

  “Lucky will not be pleased to hear that you have not been helpful.” - Joe Adonis “The outcome of the war appeared extremely grave. In addition, there was the most serious concern over possible sabotage in the ports. It was necessary to use every possible means to prevent and forestall sabotage and to prevent the possible supplying of and contact with enemy submarines.” - Captain Roscoe C. MacFall “There was peace on the waterfront. It was kept with rough methods. But that's what the Navy asked us to do and that's what the Navy go.” - Meyer Lansky Just because Lucky Luciano was one of the most famous mobsters of the 20th century doesn’t mean he was not a patriot ready to help the Allies win the war. Well… that’s one way to look at it. Otherwise, we’d have to conclude that during WWII, the government made a deal with the biggest Mafia boss of the times, releasing him from prison in exchange for his cooperation. Back then the government was in a bind—it wanted to protect American shores from sabotage at the hands of Nazi sympathizers, but it had only limited control on the docks. American ports belonged to the Mafia. And so the logical conclusion was that, for the sake of the war effort, the government jumped in bed with organized crime. This is the tale of the marriage of convenience between the American Navy and Lucky Luciano. Thank you to Alexander Von Sternberg from History Impossible for his help in crafting this episode. If you feel generous and enjoy History on Fire, please consider joining my ⁠Patreon⁠ at to access plenty of bonus content. All the links to History on Fire social media can be found at our ⁠⁠LinkTree⁠⁠, including: ⁠⁠HOF YouTube Channel⁠⁠, ⁠⁠Substack⁠⁠, ⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠TikTok⁠⁠. Throughout history, people have used mushrooms (such as Lion’s Mane, Turkey Tail, Cordyceps, Reishi and Chaga) for their medicinal properties. My friends started ⁠⁠Purest Mushrooms⁠⁠ where they offer some of the best quality mushrooms you can find on the market at affordable prices. Use code historyonfire at checkout for a discount. Bison is some of the healthiest meat you could possibly eat. Get yours at ⁠⁠Dakota Pure Bison⁠⁠. History on Fire listeners get a discount by using the code HOF10 at checkout. This episode is supported by Arizona State University. Learn more about how ⁠⁠ASU⁠⁠ supports all learners through all stages of life.  My friend James Pieratt is one of the world’s top functional training experts, and a record-breaking hybrid athlete. Use the code WH25 for a 25% discount on all of his training programs at ⁠⁠Wild Hunt Conditioning⁠⁠. This episode is sponsored by Mint Mobile. Get your 3-month Unlimited wireless plan for just 15 bucks a month.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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• EPISODE 112: Historical Daddy Issues

  “The thought of him now and always has been a sense of comfort. I could breathe, I could sleep, when he had me in his arms. My father—he got me breath, he got me lungs, strength—life… The best I ever knew. He combined strength and courage with gentleness, tenderness and great unselfishness.” - Theodore Roosevelt about his father. Since my daughter was born, I have been trying my best to be as good a father as I’m capable of. Given this priority, it’s probably not surprising that I’ve given a whole lot of thought about what it means to be a good father, what makes a bad father and everything in between. In this episode, I tackle fatherhood in history: the bad (a lot), the good (considerably less), and the possible consequences. Looking at the evidence makes me wonder if much of history is the product of child abuse coming home to roost. In the course of this exploration, I look at a quite a few case studies (from Churchill to Stalin, from Marcus Aurelius to Alexander the Great, etc.), discuss the field of psychohistory, receive an assist from Dan Carlin, analyze how culture may shape fatherhood, and ponder how much bad fathers may have contributed to the popularity of dictators and cult leaders. If you feel generous and enjoy History on Fire, please consider joining my Patreon to access plenty of bonus content. All the links to History on Fire social media can be found at our ⁠⁠LinkTree⁠⁠, including the ⁠⁠HOF YouTube Channel⁠⁠, ⁠⁠Substack⁠⁠, ⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠, and ⁠⁠TikTok⁠⁠. Throughout history, people have used mushrooms (such as Lion’s Mane, Turkey Tail, Cordyceps, Reishi and Chaga) for their medicinal properties. My friends started ⁠⁠Purest Mushrooms⁠⁠ where they offer some of the best quality mushrooms you can find on the market at affordable prices. Use code historyonfire at checkout for a discount. Bison is some of the healthiest meat you could possibly eat. Get yours at ⁠⁠Dakota Pure Bison⁠⁠. History on Fire listeners get a discount by using the code HOF10 at checkout. This episode is supported by Arizona State University. Learn more about how ⁠ASU⁠ supports all learners through all stages of life. My friend James Pieratt is one of the world’s top functional training experts, and a record-breaking hybrid athlete. Use the code WH25 for a 25% discount on all of his training programs at Wild Hunt Conditioning. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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• [RERUN] EPISODE 79: Slavery

  It was only a few generations ago when large numbers of people in United States saw nothing wrong with the notion of buying, selling and owning human beings. Weirder yet, some slave owners were masters in the mental gymnastics required to feel morally justified in enslaving members of their own families, including their own children. In this episode, I am joined by Darryl Cooper from The Martyrmade Podcast for a conversation about the institution of slavery. If you feel generous and enjoy History on Fire, please consider joining my Patreon at to access plenty of bonus content. All the links to History on Fire social media can be found at our ⁠LinkTree⁠, including: ⁠HOF YouTube Channel⁠, ⁠Substack⁠, ⁠Instagram⁠ and ⁠TikTok⁠. Throughout history, people have used mushrooms (such as Lion’s Mane, Turkey Tail, Cordyceps, Reishi and Chaga) for their medicinal properties. My friends started ⁠Purest Mushrooms⁠ where they offer some of the best quality mushrooms you can find on the market at affordable prices. Use code historyonfire at checkout for a discount. Bison is some of the healthiest meat you could possibly eat. Get yours at ⁠Dakota Pure Bison⁠. History on Fire listeners get a discount by using the code HOF10 at checkout. This episode is supported by Arizona State University. Learn more about how ⁠ASU⁠ supports all learners through all stages of life.  My friend James Pieratt is one of the world’s top functional training experts, and a record-breaking hybrid athlete. Use the code WH25 for a 25% discount on all of his training programs at ⁠Wild Hunt Conditioning⁠. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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